Wind and Sand, To the End
by ThesaurusWreck
Summary: We're assuming the castle wasn't completely destroyed, and Yorda wasn't an only child. I'm not good with summaries .. But I can bribe! Read and comment and you gets a cookie  ecookies only, ya'll are on a cyber diet.
1. Love is in the Wind

-1_Love is in the Wind_

Like a wave of thunder, the castle came crashing down, raining in torrents around Lisia, and she felt worry grip her heart. Her sister was encased within the confines of that castle- that unholy fortress that held Lisia prisoner once. Now - perhaps luckily- she was placed into the underground cage, where she was surrounded by the pulsating land. Also, maybe the destruction of her home would also be a blessing, as was her confinement. She could even see outside if that was any replacement for the actual thing, but she got a breeze from the sea outside, and could see the rolling waves through the iron bars that passed for windows. The way out of her 'cage' was open though, for worry about her ever escaping was not common. Her power was unlike that of her sister's, for she could not open the doors, and if she tried, it would take all of her immortal energy, and very likely kill her. Her only ability she knew, was that she could speak the human language. She took quickly to her mother speaking with those horned strangers.

_Yorda… _Lisia thought sadly, remembering the times when they were young, and her mother had yet to place them in their iron cages, and earthen barriers. Yorda was useful to the Queen, so she was put to prison inside the fortress, in that place which would be her doom. There was a chance that she was safe though, that thought occurred to Lisia in her sorrow. She saw her sister, from far away, her white skin and dress illuminated on the emerald grass, with that strange horned boy. Cursed he was, because they all were. When she saw them at first, she tried to cry out, but quickly stopped herself; they would never hear her meek voice. Besides, she would be but a burden, no help and weak.

Now, as that terribly prison fell in broken pieces, some still standing, some crashed down onto the earth, Lisia decided to bring herself out. She knew her mother was dead- if the crashing of the castle was no clue to that, she could feel it within herself. Had her mother been a better person, Lisia would mourn the loss, but… she was not sad in the least. She was uplifted almost- for she did not think much of the future, it never seemed worth thinking about, and she wasn't thinking about it now. She was of course, a bit perplexed, for she would need to find herself a way out. The exit from which she could climb out of was only a little above her, she could jump and reach it… yet she had minimal strength and weak bones. Thin, and as frighteningly pale as her sister, the younger girl was kept trapped away longer than Yorda, and her muscles were very relaxed, her strength little from less than proper nutrition. Yet she was still a beauty as both her mother and sister.

Her hair was as her mothers', long and unkempt, yet soft and thick, falling down her back in rolling waves. Her eyes, a blue mimicking the purity of the sky, revealing the pain and confusion that was the same as in Yorda's eyes. It could be argued that Lisia was in some ways, more intelligent, faster, yet not all the time. Her dress was new at least- thin and reaching below her feet because her mother had over estimated her growth, a flowing black that hung loosely around her gaunt frame, yet beautiful on her pale skin. Once a year her mother had those shadow men bring her a new one, for she was a growing young girl. She had to after all, be kept comfortable and alive- in case all else failed she supposed, she would have to be her mother's immortal vessel. In that, she was almost selfish, hoping her sister would be the one… but she felt so guilty about it she almost begged to be chosen instead. Now, the time of worry was over, she would have the peace of her serene refuge.

Lisia raised her arms and made a feeble jump to grab hold of the edges of the opening, keeping hold for as long as her will would allow. _I'll make it, _she told herself, pulling up with all of her power. Luckily, as weak as she was, she made up for that by being equally thin, she didn't have much weight to lift. Still though, her arms shook, but she made it out, breathing heavy on the unfamiliar grass under her. It wasn't the cold metal she was used to, and the sun so unfiltered and direct… she'd forgotten what it was like to be free. Not to have the eternal binds on her.

The castle was still making its way slowly down, almost to a halt with much of the structure still intact, Lisia figured she was safe with her current position. She stood shakily, wiggling her toes in the fresh dew of the grass. She breathed in deep, unaccustomed to the fresh air, it was much different than the breeze she would catch through the window. Lisia turned her gaze to the ocean that provided her fresh morning scent. _Freedom… _but where would she go? There had to be many lands out there in that vast water… but how was she to get off of her own island?

Lisia squinted against the sun's rays, thinking she saw a small object in the water- a boat perhaps? It was jostled by heavy waves, tumbling around helplessly, making no move to fight the storms. She looked harder, and she saw the boy that traveled with Yorda- she was not with him. A wave rolled over the boat and washed it down into the water, and Lisia felt a tug at her heart, a strong emotion that brought a tear to her eye. It rolled down her cheek, crashing against her rosy lips and onto her tongue, salty like the sea. Once, she had been there- down at the sea with the soft sand- with Yorda, though they weren't supposed to be there, they got in trouble for their trip. They weren't fed for a week. She smiled at the memory, but the smile faltered with every new memory she had.

_My sister… _and suddenly, she knew her sister's fate was the same as they boy's own. She felt a breeze brought from the sea, one that blew her hair and washed away the tears that swam in her eyes. _I love you- be free, _the wind spoke to her in a low, shaky voice. " Yorda…" Lisia whispered with a faint smile. She may have been gone, but she was somewhere she was happy. She closed her eyes and felt sand beneath her toes, waves against her body. Yorda was at a beautiful place. She heard a boy call out Yorda's name, she was with an incredibly person, a brave person. Yorda would be fine, that much Lisia knew, still she felt grief for herself, for her loss. Not entirely selfish, no selfless, they hadn't seen each other for a year… but she remembered her gentle hugs as if she felt them yesterday.

_I feel you now… _Lisia thought as the wind wrapped around her, and though it was cold, it felt good. Jostled suddenly from the wind around her, with a stomping of hooves and a halting of that fragile wind. Lisia looked around quickly, not far away, on the other side of a shallow crevice leading into the forest, was a group of horses. They came from lands far away, upon the beach on the other side, more than a week's walk away.

They were too far away to see her clearly, she knew, but still she hid behind some debris, watching the people who came. Another sacrifice probably- boy would they be mad when they found the queen would not be paying them for their services. They were probably already mad to find out they could not come to the castle by way of the bridge. There was a ledge there though, they could make their way across if they pressed themselves against the rock wall. Lisia's eyesight was well, she could see far, and so she examined these strangers.

None of them but those hooded had horns, this was no the sacrifice from the usual village, but she recognized from where it came. Behind the horses, chained tightly at the wrists so he couldn't escape, was a fiery boy, glaring at the men ahead of him. He had shocking blonde hair, streaked in crimson with a scar along his right eye. Not a scar- a birth mark, and the cursed indigo eyes. She'd seen this once, a dreaded curse that came from a village very far away out in the deserts, these children were usually sacrificed at birth, but she guessed this one- as with the other one she saw when she was younger- had been hidden out in the dunes. They found him though, that was for sure.

Another fact that he'd been hidden out in the dunes was his build, he was dark, bronzed to brown almost, and his eyes were sharp. He scanned the area while glaring ahead. His body was nothing short of muscular, wiry and taught, anticipating a fight at any moment. Lisia wasn't sure how these horned men had gotten them down, or what they would do with him when they saw this place crumbling. His clothes were like those of desert dwellers, more home maid than the rest, and not too well made. He wore no shirt, a sash only around his waste, and loose black pants, tied tight at the calves, then covered by well crafted boots.

Lisia found herself coming further out of the debris to look at the boy, but stopped dead when he looked directly at her, no longer glaring, but very curious. He softened his look and squinted his eyes. She knew he saw her. And if she didn't know what he was going to do, he knew what he was going to do, he wasn't waiting around for those men to kill him. Swiftly and with power, he yanked away the chain and in turn upset the horse. The chain links broke under both sides pulling, and he whipped at the three men around him. Using the freedom he had, he got both of his hands from the chain connection and deftly took a sword from one of the men, as they slowly came off of their horses to attempt battle. But they were clumsy and flustered, while this boy was quick and he knew exactly what he was doing.

Lisia looked away quickly as the boy massacred the three men, she heard the stomping of heavy hooves- the horses were probably frantically charging away. She peeked out from behind her debris and saw he had to jump out of their way not to be trampled, and they did not respond when he yelled for them to come back. She heard him yell in frustration, and ducked back behind the rock, he didn't seem too happy. Perhaps he'd forgotten about her and would trek through the woods- though it would be dangerous and he probably had no idea where to go.


	2. The Unlikely Pair

-1_Disclaimer thingy: Ehem, I do not own Ico or Yorda bla bla bla, BUT Lisia and Ivan are all mine to do with as I please. So there! … . _

_Comment, please? O.o no one ever does --_

_The Unlikely Pair_

Ivan surveyed the land around him- now he didn't know what to do. He could turn around and lose himself in the woods, but he was unfamiliar with it, and weary from the first trip. They fed him little and slept sparingly. He would have to be lucky to get out of the woods and back to the beach they first landed on- he was not a lucky guy. Even if he got back to the boat, where would he go to, alone he couldn't sail the ship even. He was unwelcome in his own land, they would kill him if they found him again. No matter how good he may be, he could not fight a whole village. There was no way.

He finally came to a decision, maybe there was life in those ruins just past the cliff, he could scale it no problem. There may be something beyond them even, a place that would be ignorant to his curse. He settled on that decision and quickly latched himself onto the rock wall, wanting to be out of the shelter of the trees. Too much closure and unfamiliar greenery, this was not the desert he knew. The hard rock under his hand bit into his flesh uncomfortable, nothing like the soft warm sand… nothing at all like it. But that water below him was much less welcoming than the hug of the rocks. That castle though, with its ruins and dust, standing half precariously on the ocean, that would be closer to home than these woods.

Rocks slid below his feet and he clumsily grasped onto the largest hand holds he could find, gritting his teeth as his lower body slammed into the roughly carved rock. He was going to take more cuts away from his battle with a boulder than with three armed men. There was one thing he could say for the rock wall though, it seemed to always be moving under his feet, the ledge crumbling off with every step he took- he probably wasn't getting across again. The constant movement it made seemed like sand, shifting under his feet with every step, bending to the shape of his foot. He was becoming dangerously home-sick, yet he missed no one. Not his parents who exiled him, they didn't him, they just made him live on his own, without so much as acknowledgment of his existence. Not the village that captured him in the middle of a cool desert night. And especially not the _friend_, the boy he saved out in the desert, the same one that alerted the villagers to his camp miles out.

Ivan chanced a look over, he only had a couple yards left, he would make it. The wind seemed to be hurrying up, but curiously on his side. He remembered always having to fight the wind, always in the desert it went against him, and his eyes became red from the sand. Here, the wind was at his side, at his back, pressing him into the wall viciously, but keeping him from falling ungracefully into the rolling ocean that called his name with every beat. _A curious land… _he attached himself to the last hand hold and propelled the rest of his body to the ledge, stumbling onto sturdy land with one last breath of the wind. He grunted and pulled himself up, looking around him quickly. _Had I imagined it?_

He was sure, when he first looked over to this side of the land, there was someone here- a girl he thought. There undoubtedly was life here if he was correct. " Hello!" he called out, met only by an eerie silence of despair. Had he been seeing things? No, from behind a pile of rocks stepped a gorgeous, frail girl wearing a deeply ebony dress that seemed to blend in with the wild hair atop her head. She looked at him intently curious with blue eyes that were relentless in their innocence. She was surely the girl he saw earlier. Would she know where the next village was? The next desert even? Did she come from a village just on the other side of that desolate castle? Ivan bit his tongue to hold off the questions, he didn't want to overwhelm her in the least.


End file.
